Swedbank AB Purchases 46,932 Shares of Masco Corporation $MAS

Key Points

• Swedbank AB increased its stake in Masco Corporation by 43.4% during Q2, owning approximately $9.98 million worth of shares.
• Masco reported a quarterly EPS of $1.30, exceeding analyst expectations and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.31 per share.
• Several analysts have raised their price targets for Masco, with Barclays setting a new target of $78.00, maintaining an "overweight" rating on the stock.

Swedbank AB lifted its holdings in Masco Corporation (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) by 43.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 155,019 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 46,932 shares during the period. Swedbank AB owned 0.07% of Masco worth $9,977,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Masco by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 27,092,099 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,883,985,000 after purchasing an additional 984,403 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Masco by 47.4% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,159,518 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $289,253,000 after purchasing an additional 1,337,889 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Masco by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,882,253 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $269,972,000 after purchasing an additional 155,351 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Masco by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,535,098 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $176,291,000 after purchasing an additional 71,881 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Masco by 13.7% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 2,132,663 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $145,254,000 after purchasing an additional 257,572 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.91% of the company's stock.

Masco Price Performance

NYSE:MAS traded down $1.15 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $71.09. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,003,472 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,107,595. Masco Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $56.55 and a fifty-two week high of $86.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 19.63. The company has a market capitalization of $14.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.19. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $71.14 and a 200-day moving average of $66.87.

Masco (NYSE:MAS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The construction company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.22. Masco had a net margin of 10.51% and a return on equity of 1,519.31%. The firm had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.20 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Masco has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.900-4.100 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Masco Corporation will post 4.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Masco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 25th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th were given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 8th. Masco's dividend payout ratio is 32.89%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Oppenheimer set a $79.00 price objective on shares of Masco and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Masco from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Loop Capital reissued a "hold" rating and set a $73.00 target price (up previously from $62.00) on shares of Masco in a research report on Monday, August 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Masco from $65.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Masco in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Masco has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $74.60.

Insider Activity

In other Masco news, CAO Heath M. Eisman sold 2,431 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.62, for a total transaction of $181,401.22. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 12,036 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $898,126.32. This represents a 16.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jai Shah sold 82,910 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.04, for a total transaction of $6,304,476.40. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 39,638 shares in the company, valued at $3,014,073.52. This represents a 67.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

About Masco

Masco Corporation designs, manufactures, and distributes home improvement and building products in North America, Europe, and internationally. The company's Plumbing Products segment offers faucets, showerheads, handheld showers, valves, bath hardware and accessories, bathing units, shower bases and enclosures, sinks, toilets, acrylic tubs, shower trays, spas, exercise pools, and fitness systems; brass, copper, and composite plumbing system components; connected water products; thermoplastic solutions, extruded plastic profiles, specialized fabrications, and PEX tubing products; and other non-decorative plumbing products.